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batbabydamian · 7 months ago

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DC July 2024 Solicitations - Comics Featuring Damian! 🦇

BATMAN AND ROBIN #11

7/10/24

Written by Joshua Williamson

Art by Juan Ferreyra

Cover by Simone Di Meo

Variant Covers: Juan Ferreyra, Travis Mercer, Christian Ward (1:25)

Bruce and Damian plan the perfect father and son getaway…to DINOSAUR ISLAND?! When the dynamic duo uncovers a deadly family secret, their investigation takes them on a fun-filled adventure to rescue one of Batman’s greatest enemies!

THE BOY WONDER #3 of 5

7/3/24

Written by Juni Ba

Art and Cover by Juni Ba

Variant Cover: Khary Randolph

The cunning Tim Drake has always been the smartest of Batman’s sons…and the most comfortable matching wits with the most sinister geniuses on Earth. Damian Wayne doesn’t like feeling outsmarted—to him, no smugly-written insult could ever be sharper than his sword—so when he’s forced to infiltrate a super-villain gala alongside the sneaky Red Robin, the biggest danger the two of them face might not be Lex Luthor but Damian’s own temper!

*John Timms Variant Cover appearance(?) + potential cameo

ABSOLUTE POWER #1

7/3/24

Written by Mark Waid

Art and Cover by Dan Mora

DC’s epic summer event kicks off with a bang, as the combined might of FAILSAFE and the BRAINIAC QUEEN has at last given Amanda Waller the ability to steal the metahuman abilities of every hero and villain on planet Earth. As chaos erupts in the streets and a massive misinformation campaign sways public opinion to her side, the founder of the Suicide Squad methodically targets each superhero dynasty one at a time, starting with SUPERMAN. But even in this darkest of hours, a resistance is forming…and BATMAN is out for vengeance. It’s a shocking blitzkrieg across the globe that is decades in the making—and will shape the course of the DC Universe for years to come! Brought to you by the superstar talents of MARK WAID and DAN MORA—it all starts here!

*John Timms Variant Cover appearance(?)

ABSOLUTE POWER: TASK FORCE VII #1

7/10/24

Written by Leah William

Art by Caitlin Yarsky

SUPER NO MORE! With the assault on Metropolis’s heroes complete, Amanda Waller’s latest living weapon, the Last Son, sets his sights on the other most powerful supers in the DCU…the Marvel Family! Will their combined powers be enough to survive this terrifying threat? In this biweekly series we'll see the ABSOLUTE POWER event through the eyes of evil—as told from the point of view of the TRINITY OF EVIL!

*Rian Gonzales Variant Cover appearance

NIGHTWING #116

7/17/24

Written by Tom Taylor

Art and cover by Bruno Redondo

Everything Dick Grayson has built is crumbling around him. His life is spiraling out of control and Heartless is at the center of all of it. Now Nightwing must leave his city. Can he take back the power he’s lost? Or will Blϋdhaven and its citizens be lost to Heartless forever?

#damian wayne #was gonna add Absolute Power: Ground Zero jic but i figured i'll just edit these once they release and there's an actual Damian cameo #like the main connecting variant cover with Damian(?) is obviously focusing on the Marvel fam #also LOL Timms having another robin switcheroo situation??#it's like he drew Damian and he found out it was supposed to be Tim and just. colored it like Tim's suit 😭#Juan Ferreyra is the new artist for the upcoming B&R arc!#i feel bad for Simone but the schedule really didn't seem feasible with how intensive his process was on top of doing other title covers 😭#i really thought Cizmesija was going to take over with how many wips he drops on insta so i'm a lil disappointed he won't stay :')#but Damian back on dino island since RSOB huh...#Williamson mentioned he figured out how to write Maya into the run so this might be the arc...? idk how to feel asdfg #damian waynesday

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toxintouch · 24 days ago

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hii!! I just read cold spots and it was AMAZING!!! Im not sure if you wanted to continue the fic, but if you don’t mind could you continue with Veres part? I don’t know what you would write about but I just feel like that fic has so much potential to be a little 3 part series or something 🙏

<- Cold Spots TYSM ANON!! I put the Vere End at the beginning for ease of reading. For the sake of folks who would like to read this as a stand-alone... I think u can? With the knowledge that the premise of Cold Spots is that Mhin and MC/Sparrow went ghost hunting. Vere is said to have been responsible for a handful of local ghost stories, so…of course he makes some mischief.🦊 Also MC needs some Winter wear, stat. A very light Possessive Vere warning in this btw, though perhaps in a roundabout way. Plausible deniability is so important to him.

You putter around in your room at the Wet Wick as you go about your nightly routine. The occasional cheer or thud from below only accentuates your nervous energy, punctuating your reluctance to settle down and get into bed. You smooth the covers with your bandaged hands and fluff the pillow before extinguishing the lamplight. You tug the bedding up above your shoulders, fighting to get comfortable. As your eyelids finally start to droop, the flicker of a shadow catches your attention. It dances and sways and bends and grows until suddenly it is right in front of you. On top of you. Silken, blood red drips down onto your face, a knife gleam smile too close for comfort. You breathe in a gasp, wondering if you should scream. “Vere, what–” “Shhh,” he coos, pressing a finger lightly to your lips. His breath is hot against your skin. “I only came to keep you warm, pet.”

Heat Signature

“Poor thing.” Vere purrs. “Your lips are so cold.” He leans ever closer, his mouth hot over yours–hovering. His other hand reaches for your face as well, nails trailing against your cheek in a teasing caress.

You feel even the thought of being cold leave your body, replaced instead by the unusual thrill he commands, that strange enthralling sway.

That heat you’ve come to associate with Vere; sweet tendrils of want that nestle in your bloodstream.

You squirm a little, though you can’t move much with him looming over you.

(You should probably do more to protest his intrusion into your room, you think to yourself, though, the majority of you is–curious, daresay even far too eager to–)

“Whatever trouble did you get up to that left you in such a state?”

At this you scoff, tilting your head back into the pillow and effectively knocking Vere’s finger from your lips.

“As if you don’t know,” you accuse.

Vere looks entirely unperturbed by you shaking him off, his lithe fingers traveling freely along the newly displayed skin of your throat, making your pulse jump.

Vere chuckles at that, dark and silky.

“Being tight lipped about your adventures, hm?” He angles your face just so, ensuring you meet his sharp eyes, his nose brushing up against yours. “Not that it matters. It so happens I do know what you’ve been up to. Trespassing in places that don’t belong to you.”

“...It was an abandoned building. I don’t think it really belonged to anyone.”

“And that’s where you’d be wrong,” Vere says, “everything in this city belongs to someone, darling. You just don’t know what belongs to who yet.” He peers down at you with laughter in his expression, though there's a distinct edge to it that you can't quite place.

“So, you're here because that building belongs to you...?”

“Hmm, amongst other things. However shall I make you apologize to me for this most egregious offense?” He asks airily, shifting until he’s beside you rather than perched over you, resting his cheek in his hand and letting his eyes slip closed. He's the absolute picture of unbothered leisure.

(You’re not fooled–he’s simply waiting for you to let your guard down before he pounces.)

You open your mouth to deny any debts on your part (though, if your ghost hunting spot was indeed Vere’s hideout, you really do feel guilty) but Vere cuts you off before you can speak.

“Alas, I suppose it’s not mine anymore. Within a week it will reek of wet dogs and cheap booze. It's a lost cause now that those drooling reprobates know it's inhabitable. A pity. By Eridia's standards it really was divine in its heyday. Good wine, music, dancing. There was this portrait artist who would paint the performances…”

His tone remains light as he reminisces. But the look he pins you with is dangerous: his eyes gleaming bright, his canines bared in an irreverent grin.

“I had such hopes and dreams of reviving the place myself. Some of the dances were very scandalous. You never did share with me your stance on dancing, did you?”

You stumble out an approximate answer. It’s…harmless information to give, isn’t it?

Though, judging by how pleased Vere looks, you wonder if you should have refused to say. He looks positively wicked as he ponders your answer aloud. “Oh, I’m sure you’ve got plenty of talents to share. In another life, perhaps I'd have put you on stage. Though, I admit. I find myself partial to a private show.”

And–as expected–the moment you let your guard down, he's in your space again, crowding you. Heat and proximity and the softest brush of his lips against yours, light enough to send a thrill down your spine, curiosity and a want so deep it surprises you.

“Well?” He purrs. “Care to audition?”

You can't hide behind the excuse of supernatural sway or charm or the thrall of hypnotic sunglo eyes. It's not Vere's power that controls you. It's your own gnawing desire; starvation and longing that draws you to him despite all sense.

Kissing Vere is heady. Dizzying.

Kissing Vere is like being in conversation with Vere–a constant of giving and taking, being chased after and running to keep up. It’s enticing and alluring and decadent and never quite enough, over too soon even as you feel yourself losing air, the rush of blood and sensation threatening to overwhelm you.

He gives a parting nip to your bottom lip as he pulls away.

Then another one, playful, to your jaw.

When he presses his face into the side of your neck, you expect him to bite again.

What you don’t expect is for him to nuzzle into you, inhaling deeply before heaving a great sigh, his tail flopping lazily to land across you with a thump.

He’s officious as he rearranges the covers, ensuring your arms are tucked carefully away from him before he’s willing to fully settle into the bedding, pulling the blankets up around the both of you like a den. He hums something low in his chest as he tucks himself up alongside you, long tail curled around your waist.

It’s rhythmic–

purring.

And it’s…soothing, actually.

The weight of him, the warmth. The incessant lamplight of the Amaryllis District, shining ever present through your window, is dim–tolerable, even, courtesy of Vere's magnificent shadow manipulations and the blankets sheltering you.

The constant noise seems to fade away as well, obscured by the sound of purring. “Falling asleep when you have me in your bed, pet? You really do try your luck…”

#Foxes purr btw!#i await more purring Vere fics I hold out my sickly little claws for them (a prompt from me for other fic writers)#You and I get to know that Vere was touching on Sparrow’s face sm bc he caught a peek at Mhin doing it in Cold Spots #and he got territorial #I decided that the narrative pointing it out was laying it on too heavy. but you and i know.#Hopefully this fits the bill ok of what u described anon! A liiittle spice but mostly wholesome??#i’m ngl I was going for more spice but ...Deicide!Flavored Vere... he took all of it #AAA SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG THO ANON AAAAuuughghhh #also ur so right anon u gotta have a sequel (since I was talking about horror tropes lol)#the thought of Vere & Mhin being down bad for the same person is sooo funny to me btw. i think of it often.#vere x reader #touchstarved x reader #toxintouch writing #touchstarved game fanfic #no pillow fight i'm osrry #this fic. fought me. this fic stole my wallet in the denny's parking lot #toxintouch: {pick} prompt {your poison}#wtf tumblr why did u do this to my image i thought i got my dimensions right the file can't be that big...#i have 2 ways of choosing titles btw on the nose and “you'll have to google this/have me explain”

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steveseddie · 9 months ago

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green and yellow

rating: t | cw: none apply | word count: 2,270

tags: eddie munson lives, and he graduates!, established relationship, fluff, soft boys, steve harrington is smitten

for the @steddielovemonth ��love is watching them do the stupidest things and falling harder for them every time”

click here to read on ao3

***

Steve is grateful when Principal Higgins finally ends his boring speech and steps down from the podium.

He started dozing off halfway through it, and he could feel the kids starting to get restless next to him, impatient for the moment they’ve all been waiting for.

The first one comes when Higgins calls Robin to the stage. Steve stands up and puts two fingers in his mouth and whistles, while the kids clap and hoot and cheer. Further up front, Mr. and Mrs. Buckley clap for their daughter too, but in a more subdued manner.

Robin climbs the steps to the stage, tripping on the very last one but catching herself just in time before she faceplants. Her face is bright red as she accepts her diploma, but she’s grinning widely. She makes eye contact with Steve and waves frantically, Steve gives her two thumbs up and an enthusiastic smile. After she walks back to her seat, Principal Higgins starts calling more names. Steve sits back down, but still claps politely for all those kids that he’s seen around town, but doesn’t really know.

When it’s Jason Carver’s turn though, Steve doesn’t clap and neither do any of the kids. He glares at him as he makes his way across the stage, grinning and waving as if he hadn’t attacked Lucas months ago or tried to get Eddie arrested or killed, and later on, expelled from school when the charges were dropped. Clearly, only Steve and the rest of the party hold a grudge because everyone else in the gym claps for him, making Steve’s blood boil.

After a few other names are called, Principal Higgins makes a special mention to Chrissy and asks for a minute of silence. Steve’s eyes scan the first few rows where the class of ‘86 sits in their caps and gowns, looking for Eddie, knowing that Chrissy’s mention would probably have upset him.

He spots his messy bun tucked under his cap. He can’t see his face, but he can see the way he’s tugging on one of his earrings, which Steve has only ever seen him do when he’s feeling very anxious. He wishes he was sitting next to him or that he could at least meet his eyes to let him know he’s here.

The tugging stops when Principal Higgins moves on and calls more names. Finally, he calls Eddie’s.

Steve and the kids don’t let there be even a second of silence, they all jump to their feet as soon as the name is called and give Eddie an ovation as big and loud as the one they gave Robin. Not as many people from the crowd join in, a few strangers here and there and Eddie’s uncle at the front, but it doesn’t matter. Eddie’s grin is blinding when he jumps onto the stage. Steve suspects there might be more than a few people glaring at him in the audience, giving him nasty looks, but no one could be able to tell by looking at Eddie who waves and bows and throws kisses at the crowd like they all came here to see him.

Principal Higgins hands him his diploma with a pinched face. Eddie takes it and Steve holds his breath. Next to him, he hears Dustin whisper, “do it, Eddie, do it!”

And almost as if he’d heard Dustin, Eddie raises his right hand and gives Principal Higgins the middle finger with the most manic grin Steve has ever seen on his face.

“Son of a bitch did it!” Dustin says, throwing a fist in the air and another wave of hoots and cheers starts in the back of the gym. Steve has half a mind to scold Henderson for his language, but he lets it slide, joining in on the cheering with another two-fingered whistle.

But the Eddie Show isn’t over yet, if there’s one thing that Eddie’s good at is giving a performance. He runs to the podium, grabs the microphone and uses it to address the crowd with a, “So long, suckers!” before dropping it on the floor, doing a dramatic curtsy and jumping from the stage. He runs all the way to the back, people’s heads whipping around to stare at him. Steve sees more than a few horrified looks, but there are also people trying to hold in their laughter.

Steve’s eyes don’t linger on them, they follow Eddie as he skips through the chairs. He knows that no one in that gym is looking at him the way he is- with literal hearts in his eyes.

Eddie finally reaches them, sitting in the very last row because by the time they arrived (late because herding a gaggle of teenagers never gets any easier) it was the only place with enough free chairs to sit all of them.

Eddie ruffles each kid’s hair, one by one. Even Max’s, who in any other circumstances would bite his head off for it, but not today. She’s grinning just as big as the others.

When Eddie reaches Steve, the last one of their group, he’s expecting to get the same treatment, and he sighs inwardly, thinking about all the time he spent on his hair this morning. But instead of messing it up like he did with the kids, Eddie cups Steve’s cheeks in his hands and stands on his tiptoes to plan a kiss to Steve’s head. By the time he falls back on his heels and lets go of his face, Steve’s cheeks have turned the brightest shade of red. Eddie winks at him, then he faces the audience one more time, throws up his devil horns and runs out of the gym.

With Eddie gone, Steve sees people’s eyes shift to him and his face flushes even more if that’s even possible.

He’s grateful when Principal Higgins picks up the microphone and asks everyone to take their seats again so they can continue after that rude interruption.

Steve flops down on his chair, but he can’t focus after that. His face feels like it could burst into flames any second and he swears he can still feel Eddie’s lips against his head.

A part of him wishes Eddie kissed his lips instead, even if, realistically, Steve knows that it would’ve been suicidal to do that in front of so many people. But who cares? He thinks. Just another way to say fuck you to this shitty town.

Steve only pays attention when Higgins calls Nancy’s name, near the end, and then he’s cheering and clapping and whistling again as she gracefully crosses the stage and picks up her diploma.

Shortly after that, Higgins asks the crowd to give it up one more time for the class of ‘86 as they all toss their caps into the air.

Steve’s eye catches something green on the floor almost right in front of him. It’s Eddie’s cap, which probably fell off his head from all his jumping around. He picks it up and tucks it under his arm.

Once the ceremony is over, everyone starts heading to the front to congratulate the students.

Steve hangs back. Robin is currently congratulating the rest of the band kids that graduated with her and he can see her parents waiting to smother her with a hug. Nancy is nowhere to be seen, probably taking the time to congratulate everyone in her class because she’s nice like that. Steve can give them a big hug later, as well as the bouquet of flowers he got for each of them.

For now, he has something to do.

He slips through the doors of the gym and goes looking for Eddie.

He finds him right outside the school, leaning against one of the walls with a lit cigarette between his lips. He’s staring down at his diploma so hard that he doesn’t notice Steve.

“I don’t think you’re supposed to be smoking on school grounds,” Steve says, walking over.

Eddie’s face lights up when he sees him, he grins at him with the cigarette dangling from his lips. “What are they gonna do? Expel me?”

Steve shrugs. “Higgins could take your diploma.”

“Over my fucking dead body,” Eddie says, but he snuffs out the cigarette anyway after taking one last hit. “Do you think he enjoyed the show?”

Steve snorts. “I’ve never seen someone’s face get so red, I thought he was gonna pop a vein.”

Eddie gives a bark of laughter. “What about you, Harrington? Did you enjoy it?”

“It was quite the show, Munson.”

He does a flourish with his hand, hinging at the waist. “I’m glad it pleased your Majesty.”

“It wasn’t just me. I’m pretty sure the kids worship you right now. They might be already planning to build a statue in your name.”

“Oh the people of Hawkins are going to love that,” Eddie says with a snort. Then his gaze falls on the cap in Steve’s hands. “Hey, is that mine?”

Steve nods. “You forgot it inside. When you were making your grand exit,” he says, twirling the cap on his finger like he would a basketball. “Can I?” He asks, gesturing at Eddie’s head.

Eddie grins. “Go for it, handsome.”

Steve nearly drops the cap when Eddie calls him that, but he doesn’t. He gently places it on top of Eddie’s head. When he does, Eddie blows out some air, making the tassel flutter. “You also forgot to do this,” Steve says, flipping the yellow tassel from the right side to the left. “There. Now you’ve officially graduated.”

He expects Eddie to make a joke or do a silly face, but instead he goes still, his eyes following the tassel as it swings back and forth. Then he says quietly, “It doesn’t feel real. Sometimes I feel like nothing that happened after the Upside Down is real. Like I died there or I fell into a coma, and this isn’t really happening.”

Steve grabs Eddie’s shoulders, he waits until Eddie meets his eyes to talk. “It is, Eds. All of it. You lived and you graduated and you showed everyone who ever doubted you that they were wrong.”

Eddie swallows thickly. His eyes dart over Steve’s face. “Sometimes you don’t feel real either. Sometimes I can’t believe that you-”

“That I love you?”

Eddie’s eyes widen to the point Steve thinks they might pop out. “You- what?”

Steve didn’t plan to say it right now. He wanted to wait until it was just them after the party that he’s throwing for Eddie and the girls at his house. He wanted to make it romantic. But it’s like he can’t help himself, the words bursting out of him.

“I love you, Eddie. And I’m so proud of you.”

Eddie whines low in his throat, eyes glistening with tears. “Goddammit, do you know how fucking unmetal it is to cry at your graduation? Fuck you, Steve!” He says, furiously wiping his eyes.

Steve lets out an undignified scoff. “I tell you I love you and you say fuck you?”

“Oh God, you keep saying it,” Eddie whispers, like he’s talking to himself.

“I will keep saying it ‘cause it’s true. I love you, I’m in love with you. The whole time I was watching you in there I wanted to yell ‘that’s my boyfriend and I love him!’”

He knows he’s laying it on too thick, but he doesn’t care. Not when Eddie’s tears fall and he looks at Steve with awe in his eyes. “Steve.” He shakes his head, the cap slides to the side, sitting crooked on Eddie’s head. “You’re such a sap, but I love you too. So much. I couldn’t have done this-” he gestures at the cap and the gown and the diploma, “-without you.”

Steve smiles. His heart feels like it could burst out of his chest when he hears that Eddie loves him back. “You could’ve, but I’ll make sure you never have to.”

A few more tears fall from his eyes and Steve uses his thumb to wipe them away. He can hear the noise coming from inside the school getting closer and louder, and he knows they have maybe a couple of minutes before people start exiting the school.

“Okay, no more tears, today is about celebrating. Besides, the brats will never think you’re cool again if they see you crying.”

Eddie laughs wetly, but manages to put himself together. Steve takes his hand and intends to drag him along to go look for his uncle and their friends, but Eddie stops him.

“Wait,” he says, using his free hand to cup Steve’s jaw and bring him in for a quick kiss. “Wanted to do that inside, but. You know.” Steve nods. He knows. “Okay, let’s go find everyone. Uncle Wayne bought a camera just for this and he I know he’s dying to use it.”

Then he’s dragging Steve toward the doors at the exact moment they open and people start pouring out.

Eddie can’t keep holding his hand after that with the kids crowding around him and taking turns hugging him or jumping on his back. Then it’s Wayne’s turn, who gives Eddie a heartfelt hug that he sinks into with the biggest smile Steve’s ever seen. Then it’s Nancy and Robin, and then Steve again. Then it’s pictures and piling everyone inside Steve’s car and Nancy’s station wagon.

There, Steve gets to hold Eddie’s hand again, over the center console as he drives them away from Hawkins High.

With his free hand, Eddie flips off the building, and everyone in the car, including Steve, cheers.

#steddielovemonth #day 27 #the only bad thing about these prompts is having to pick titles for them other than that i'm loving writing so many of these #steddie #stranger things #stranger things fic #steve harrington #eddie munson #monse writes

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slavicafire · 4 days ago

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oh I am such a hater. booted it up just to make sure it works and even the title screen makes me mad. cartoony ass mobile game

#żmija gada #I am bioware critical bioware skeptical bioware cynical! what of it #the intro that just flashes all the companions in a mix of the sims 2 intro with fortnite thrown in. it sucked so bad. it was just a prelud #to the title screen and yet it sucked so bad #I'm trying to approach it in as much good faith as I can muster #but it's hard

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pencap · 1 year ago

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By Sylvie (j.p.)

#poets on tumblr #spilled ink #poetry #writeblr #poems on tumblr #original poem #(help somebody please tell me what the tags are these days)#trick or treat #poetics #this is not in fact the new poem i mentioned like a week ago #i'm still sitting on that one #but this idea seized me and wouldn't let me go #i don't /love/ the execution of it but it isn't half bad #and the title says it has to go out today so #here it is!! in its probably-unfinished-and-probably-going-to-stay-that-way glory #i don't love screenshots as a format #but this is absolutely designed to be two-column poem #and as far as i know tumblr doesn't natively support that so....

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pandadrake · 4 months ago

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Someone commented that they thought my drawing of Harvey Dent was Bruce Wayne, so I tried drawing Bruce Wayne and he turned out so weird and creepy-looking that I'm uploading this instead.

#*Pennyworth voice* Master Bruce you must return to Roblox #Bruce Wayne if his face was very bad #I'm a BTAS fan so my ideal Bruce Wayne is an anthropomorphic brick #My favorite Harvey design by far is BTAS but he’s so specific to BTAS and I wanted to draw a Harvey who could pass for a comics version #my art #batman fanart #batman #bruce wayne #harvey dent #two face eventually #batman year one harvey #I dont know why the hardest character for me to draw in almost all things is the title character

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kaisollisto · 1 month ago

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(Based off of the reality of having a metal ring in your back as a constant reminder of your fate and how that affects you as a person set in the Switzerland arc)

“Does it hurt?”

Ava’s pressed face down into the pillow sleep curling around her limbs. She hums, she can’t remember what she says, she’s exhausted. Her arms are tangled beneath her pillow. She holds her fingers tightly between each other, her bones ache from the pressure but her hands no longer shake. Ava hasn’t experienced this before, a fear that haunts her at night. (She finds she cannot stop dreaming about dying. It’s stifling in the cover of night trying to figure out where she is.)

She slowly opens her eyes and squints in the darkness. Beatrice is facing her a furrow in her brow that Ava knows she’s doing unconsciously. Ava’s lip quirks a smidgen, Beatrice looks funny. It’s a bit silly to her, Beatrice no doubt working out a solution to an unknown problem that Ava has yet to see in the middle of the night. In her sleepy state she wants to laugh at the imaginary cogs churning in Beatrice’s head.

Beatrice scooches closer and Ava panics, her skin can taste the dust of Bea’s forearm. She hoists herself up on her elbows, turning to face Beatrice. “Wha?” Ava’s shaking off bits of sleep from her mouth when Beatrice repeats herself.

“Does the Halo hurt?”

She doesn’t know if she wants to answer that. Ava peers over Beatrice squinting at the harsh light of the digital clock on Beatrice’s side. Ava loves it, it reminds her of the early 2000’s and the aesthetic of waking up to an alarm to go somewhere. The clock blinks an innocent 1:43 Am, and Ava debates on letting her head thump back down.

She turns her body on her side, she can feel the halo shifting in her back and it makes her want to throw up. The sides of the halo press against her shoulder blades and Ava resists the urge to yank it out. She grits her teeth and settles ignoring the skin of her back pulling tight to accommodate for the ring. Beatrice is still expecting an answer and Ava can’t lie to her, she pulls the covers of the sheet up to her chest hoping to bide more time for an answer.

"Everything hurts Bea," Ava smiles, "getting my ass handed to me is hard work."

Beatrice frowns displeased but looks at her through her lashes, it's unguarded, the stress and worries of the world stay out of their room in the dead of night. Her lashes are so pretty and Ava wants to curse the soft glow of the moon. There’s just enough moonlight to illuminate her eyes but overshadow her freckles. Ava swallows down the taste of defeat, she can’t win, she thinks.

Her gaze is soft, Beatrice is looking at her and it’s different yet the same. The same feeling in her chest constricting her lungs, the same soft gaze of Beatrice. Beatrice who likes what she sees in Ava when Ava can barely see where she begins. She doesn’t like to dwell on it, the truth of the matter being what belongs to Ava.

If she closes her eyes she can pretend just a little longer. She can give herself the hope of the future and what comes after all this. She can put down the fighting and the artifact and live. Ava doesn't want to think about it anymore, at least not tonight when Beatrice is here with her.

Beatrice is soft. She knows it from hours and hours of training. She's felt it when Beatrice corrects her form, in the way she talks. She speaks from a place of care like she has turned the harsh words in her brain over and over to soften the syllables spoken to Ava. And Ava doesn't linger on it, the meaning behind it, (Ava didn't think she'd make it this far, finding a person who cares quite like Bea does.)

And Ava's got it bad, she knows she's fucked because Beatrice doesn’t say anything about her language and Ava can't not tell her the truth. She looks down, her hand fiddling with the bed sheet underneath them.

"It doesn't hurt," if she thinks about it she can feel the fibers of the cotton between the pads of her fingers. "But it's very uncomfortable." She doesn't want to find the response in Beatrice's eyes, content to hear it from her voice. The soft British lilting accent that holds her just as soft as a touch.

She waits, she can picture Bea’s mannerisms with her eyes closed but maybe she should check just to be sure. Ava peers up at Beatrice and she’s suddenly closer. Her eyes really are pretty, there’s a depth to them that Ava wants to spend an ungodly amount of time studying.

“Can I help?”